Circuit breaker assembly



SePt- 19, 1967 c. l.. JENCKs ETAL 3,343,109

CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY Filed Aug. 50, 1965 4 Sheets-Shea?l 2 INVENTORS CHARLES L. L//vcxs, GEORGE W /ESEL Sept. 19, 1967 Q L, JENCKSETAL 3,343,109

' CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY Filed Aug. 3o, 1965 4 sheets-sheet sINVENTORS CHARLES L/E/vcKs,

GEORGE /ESEL Sept 19, 1.967 c. L. JENcKs r-:TAL 3,343,109

CIRCUITA BREAKER ASSEMBLY 4 sheets-sheen 4 Filed Aug. 30. 1965 NVENTORSCHARM: s k/ffvc/fs, GEORGE IA/ /gsa B Y WM @L7 T TORNE Y United StatesPatent O 3,343,109 CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY Charles L. `lencks, Avon,and George W. Kiesel, Unionville, Conn., assiguors to General ElectricCompany, a corporation of New York Filed Aug. 30, 1965, Ser. No. 483,718

21 Claims. (Cl. 335-26) ABSTRACT F THE DISCLOSURE A circuit breakermechanism including a toggle linkage connected between a contact arm anda releasable support member, and an operating spring having one endiixedly mounted and biasing the contact arm toward closed position atall times when the releasable support is in latched position and biasingthe contact arm open when the releasable support is in releasedcondition; a manually operable rotatable cam member acts through apivoted operating arm on the toggle linkage to reset the mechanism fromreleased to relatched condition and suddenly releases the mechanism topermit rapid closing under the force of the operating spring after suchrelatchng has occurred.

This invention relates to electric circuit breakers and, moreparticularly, to a novel manually and automatically operable electriccircuit breaker assembly of the releasable cradle and toggle type foruse in circuits carrying relatively high currents.

In employing circuit breakers to open and close circuits carryingrelatively large currents, it is necessary to operate large contacts athigh speeds and to exert high contact pressures which generally requiresthe employment of powerful springs to operate the circuit breakermechanism effectively. It is difficult for the average person to operatecircuit breakers of this type due to the large spring force thatnecessarily must be overcome to reset the operating mechanism, andvarious mechanical means have been employed or proposed to facilitateoperation of such circuit breaker mechanisms. Many of these devices areeX- pensive to manufacture and/ or cumbersome in operation.

It is an object of this invention to provide a novel circuit breakerassembly for relatively hi-gh currents and voltages -that utilizes arelatively compact and simplified operating mechanism for positioning atoggle-operated mechanism against the bias of a powerful operatingspring.

It is also an object to provide such a circuit breaker operatingmechanism of the type having a novel and rapidly operating togglelinkage and readily resettab-le by an operating lever.

Another object is to provide such a circuit breaker assembly wherein thetoggle mechanism may be operated against the spring by a readilyrotatable, manually operable mechanism Which also indicates the positionof the contacts, if desired.

Yet another object is to provide such a circuit breaker assembly whereina rotatable mechanism may be used for resetting the operating mechanismof the circuit breaker by movements over relatively short space.

An additional object of this invention is to provide a novel circuitbreaker of the type having a releasable cradle operating mechanismwherein the contact arm is rotated rapidly and forcefully to the closedposition after the supporting releasable cradle has been reset to thefixed or operating position.

Other objects and advantages will be readily apparent from the followingdetailed specification and the appended claims.

It has now been found that the foregoing objects and other advantagescan be readily attained in a circuit breaker having a support, a fixedcontact on the support, and a movable contact arm pivoted on the supportand providing a movable contact for engagement and the fixed contact andpivotable into a closed position with its contact in engagement with thexed contact and into an open position away therefrom. A releasablemember is pivoted on the support and is normally engaged with and heldin fixed position by operating means on the support which is releasabletherefrom to release the releasable member from the iixed position topermit it to pivot and move the contact arm away from the fixed contact.A toggle linkage between the releasable member and the contact armpositions the releasable member and the contact arm in open and closedposition, and a spring with one end fixed to the support and the -otherend engaged with the toggle linkage biases the toggle linkage to closedcontact position in the fixed position of the releasable member and also'biases the releasable member away from the fixed contact upon releasefrom the operating means. A resetting means is utilized for moving thetoggle linkage and releasable member against the action of the spring toengage the releasable member with the operating means in the fixedposition and for releasing the toggle linkage uponengagement of thereleasable member in the fixed position so that the contact arm rotatesrapidly to the closed position. The resetting means includes a resettingmember engageable with the toggle linkage in the open position thereoffor movement of the releasable member into engagement with the operatingmeans and permitting rapid movement of the toggle linkage to closedposition upon engagement of the releasable member by the operatingmeans.

The resetting member employed in the present invention is a leverpivotably mounted on the support and operable upon pivoting of one endthereof with its other end engaging the toggle linkage, mostconveniently by provision of a recess or notch in the other end of thelever which receives the shaft pin connecting the links of the togglefor movement to engage the releasable member upon the operating means.In accordance with conventional practice the operating means is apivotable latch member operable upon a plurality of conditions includingmanual actuation by a rod, electromagnetic acuation upon sudden largecurrent -overloads or overheating of a bimetallic strip produced bysmall continuous overloads in current.

For highly advantageous operation the movable contact arm is pivotablymounted on the support adjacent one end thereof and provides the contactpoint adjacent the other end thereof and the releasable member ispivotably mounted on the support adjacent one end thereof with its otherend held in latched position by the operating means. The toggle linkagehas one link pivotably connected to the releasable member intermediatethe length thereof and a second link pivotably connected to the contactarm intermediate the length thereof with a pivot pin connecting thetoggle links at the knee of the linkage. The spring operating the togglelinkage has its xed end mounted on the support at a point spaced towardsthe fixed contact from a line drawn between the pivoted connection ofthe links to the contact arm and releasable member in the closedposition of the Contact arm so that the spring is generally constantlybiasing the toggle linkage to closed contact position in the lixedposition of the releasable member and in the released position of thereleasable member dra-ws the releasable member and Contact arm away fromthe fixed contact. From a standpoint of minimizing the size of theassembly and improving the operation of the lever, a generally V-shapedmember is employed as the lever and mounted adjacent its apex.

For operating the lever a cam is most desirably employed which issupported upon a shaft rotatably mounted on the support and which hasits periphery engaged with the one end of the lever and so configured asto pivot the lever in one direction upon rotation thereof to move thereleasable member intoy latching engagement with the operating means andconfigured thereafter to release the lever from the pivoted position forrapid movement in the opposite direction under the action of the spring.In order to effect rotation of the cam, a handle is mounted on the shaftoutwardly of the support for engagement by the user to rotate the shaftand thereby the cam for pivoting of the lever. In its preferred aspectsuitable means are provided for preventing rotation of the cam in onedirection such as a plurality of pawls in the cam engageable withshoulders on the shaft. In this manner a ratchet may be mounted on theshaft as the operating handle so as to permit rotation of the camthrough 360 although the ratchet might be operated through a far smallerarc.

As will be readily appreciated, the contact arm and the xed contact areelectrically connected to the load and line terminals on the support andvarious other elements of conventional circuit breaker structure maydesirably be employed in conjunction with the novel toggle and resettingassembly of the present invention.

In operation of the invention it can be seen that the tension springsare constantly biasing the toggle links towards a condition which tendsto position the contact arm in the closed position when the releasablecradle is latched in the lixed position by the operating means. However,the same tension springs also function to apply an upward force throughthe toggle linkage which biases the releasable member and contact armtoward a tripped position upon release by the latch of the releasablemember so that the toggle links are lbuckled in the opposite directionto pivot the releasable member and contact arm away from the Iixedcontact to the tripped position.

For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference isnow made to the following detailed specification and to the accompanyingdrawings wherein:

FIGURE l is a side elevational View of a circuit breaker assemblyembodying the present invention with the housing broken away and certaincomponents in section for clarity of illustration and showing the movingelements in the closed position;

FIGURE 2A is an enlarged side elevational view of the moving elements ofthe circuit breaker of FIGURE 1 in the tripped condition; FIGURE 2B is atop View of the cam and lever in this condition;

FIGURE 3A is similar to FIGURE 2A and shows the position of the movingelements with the cam rotated 90; FIGURE 3B is a partial top view of thecam and lever in this condition;

FIGURE 4A is similar to FIGURE 2A and shows the position of the movingelements with the cam rotated 180;

FIGURE 4B is a partial top View of the cam and lever in this condition;

FIGURE 5A is similar to FIGURE 2A and shows the moving elements with thecam rotated 330 and the latch or releasable member in position to engagethe cradle;

FIGURE 5B is a partial top view of the cam and lever in this condition;

FIGURE 6A is similar to FIGURE 2A and shows the moving elements resetupon rotation of the cam 360; and

FIGURE 6B is a top View of the cam and lever in this position with thecover plate of the cam removed to show internal construction.

Referring now in detail to the attached drawings, therein illustrated isa circuit breaker assembly embodying the present invention and having ahousing, generally designated by the numeral 2 with a load terminal 4and a line terminal `6 connected to the fixed contact 8 thereon.Pivotably mounted on the housing 2 by the pivot pin 10 is the pivotedend portion 12 of the releasable member or cradle generally designatedby the numeral 14. The opposite end or latch portion 16 of thereleasable member CII 14 is engaged with the shoulder 18 on the latchmember, generally designated by the numeral 20, which is pivotablymounted on the housing 2 by the pivot pin 21. The latch member 20 isbiased into engagement with the releasable member 14 by the action ofthe spring 22 mounted on the support element 24 on the housing 2 and islimited in its movement by the stop 26 on the housing 2.

Pivotably mounted on the support element 28 of the housing 2 by a pivotpin 30 is one end of a generally channel-shaped contact arm, generallydesignated by the numeral 32. A contact member 33 is also pivotablymounted on the pivot pin 30 within the contact arm 32, and carries acontact 34 at its outer end. A compression spring 35 is provided betweenthe contact member 33 and the contact arm 32. The cradle 14 and contactarm 32 are connected intermediate their ends by the pivot pins 36, 38 tothe toggle linkage provided by the toggle links 40, 42 which arepivotably connected to each other by the knee pin 44. The toggle linkageis biased toward straightened condition by a pair of tension springs 46(the second spring is behind the cradle 14) which are engaged with theknee pin 44 at one end and attached to the pin 48 fixedly carried by thehousing 2, at the other end.

The xed ends of the tension springs 46 are thus spaced toward the ixedcontact 8 to the side of the line drawn between the pivot pins 36, 38for the toggle links 40, 42 in the latched position of the cradle 14.Thus, the springs bias the toggle links 40, 42 toward the fixed contact8 to hold the contact arm 32 in firm contact with the'ixed contact 8 inthe latched position of the cradle 14 as shown in FIGURE 1. At the sametime, the springs l46 tend to rotate the cradle 14 in a clockwisedirection about the pivot pin 10 to hold the latch portion 16 againstthe shoulder 18 of the latch member 20.

The cradle 14 is releasable by the latch member 20 manually by pushingupon the push rod 50 which has one end extending outwardly of thehousing 2 and which in turn will push upon the arm 52 of the latchmember 20 to rotate it counterclockwise against the biasing pressure ofthe spring 22. Upon movement of the shoulder 18 from the latch portion16, the cradle 14 rotates in -a clockwise direction under the pressureof the tension springs 46 which apply an upward lforce on the knee pin44 and cause the toggle links 40, 42 to buckle away from the iixedcontact 8 until the cradle 14 abuts against the pin 48 and the contactarm abuts against the stop 53 as shown in FIGURE 2A, the conditiontherein illustrated being the tripped condition.

The latch member 20 is also releasable by the action of a smallcontinuous overload current passing through the bimetallic strip 54which has its free end connected to the upper end of the latch member 20Iby the connecting rod 56. The bimetallic strip 54 is electricallyconnected to the load terminal 4 by the flexible cable 58 and willbedistorted away from the latch member 20y by an overload current passingtherethrough so as to pull against the latch member 20 through theconnecting rod 56 and thereby pivot the latch member 20 against theaction of the spring 22 to release the cradle 14.

The latch member 20 is also releasable rapidly upon a sudden largeoverload current through the action of the solenoid 60 which isconnected to the bimetallic strip 54 and to the contact member 33 by theileXi'ble cables 62, 64. The solenoid 60 is mounted on'the bracket 66upon which is pivotably mounted the armature 68, and a sudden largeoverload current will cause the solenoid 60 to draw the armature 68downwardly against the pressure of the spring 70 and cause it to bearagainst the arm 52 of tlhe latch member 20' to pivot it and release thecradle 14.

Thus, it can be seen that the latch member 20 can be actuated to releasethe cradle 14 manually yby the push rod 50 or by the bi-metalllic strip54 and solenoid 60 in the event of overload conditions in the currentpassing between the load terminal 4 and the line terminal 6 therethroughand through the fixed contact 8 and the contact arm 32. In accordancewith desirable practice, an arc chute or shield 72 is provided about thefixed contact 8 to extinguish arcs `formed during opening and closing ofthe contacts. To minimize arcing, the springs 46 are selected to exerthigh pressures on the toggle linkage and thereby to move the contact arm32 rapidly towards and away from the fixed contact 8.

In order to reset the circuit breaker assembly from the tripped positionsho/wn in FIGURE 2A to the closed position shown in FIGURE 1 against thehigh pressure of the springs `46, resetting means are provided includingthe generally V-shaped resetting Ilever, generally designated by thenumeral 74, which is pivotably mounted on the housing 2 by the pivot pin76. The lever 74 has a bifurcated portion 78 providing a recess 79 andwith the prong 80 closest t-he fixed contact 8 longer than the prong 82.As seen in FIGURE 1, the inner surface of the prong 80 bears against theknee pin 44 of the toggle linkage in the closed position and, as seen inFIGURE 2, the knee pin 44 is received Within the recess 79 in chetripped position. The `opposite end of the resetting lever 74 has ashaft 84 mounted thereon rotatably carrying the cam roller 86 whichengages the periphery of a disc-type cam generally designated by thenumeral 88. The cam 88 is mounted on the shaft 90l which has one endrotatably -supported in the bracket 92 on the housing 2 and the otherend portion 94 extending outwardly of the housing 2. A handle 96 ismounted on the end shaft portion 94 and held in assembly to the housing2 by the plate 98 on the interior of the housing 2 and fasteners 100I sothat it will rotate the cam shaft 90.

lIn this embodiment, the cam 88 is constructed so that it will rotate inonly direction, thus permitting a ratchettype rotation of the handle 94over only small arcs to permit use in confined spaces while effectingfull rotation of the cam 88. As best vseen in FIGURE 6B, the cam 88 hasa body portion 102 providing a peripheral camming surface 104 ofincreasing radius in a counterclockwise direction from the notch 106 andwith several steps 107. Within the 'body portion 102 are recesses 108 inwhich are seated pawls 110 which are biased by springs 112 intoengagement with teeth or shoulders 114 on the cam shaft 90 so that itwill rotate with the shaft 90 only in the clockwise direction. The pawls110 and springs 112 are held within the recesses 108 by the cover plate116 shown in FIGURE 1. Thus, the cam 88 permits steptype ratchetedoperation of the resetting lever 74 against the pressure of the springs46 and then suddenly releases it to close the contacts 8, 34 rapidly aswill be explained more fully hereinafter by reference to the partialviews of the primary moving elements.

FIGURES l, 6A and 6B illustrate the moving elements in the closedposition with the cam roller 86 on the resetting lever disposed withinthe notch 106 of the cam 88 and the contacts 8, 34 closed with thesprings 46 applying pressure through the knee pin 44 to the togglelinkage tending to draw it towards the fixed contact `8.

Upon pivoting of the latch member by the push rod 50, bi-metallic strip54 or solenoid 60, the springs 46 rotate the now released cradle 14 in aclockwise direction, buckle the toggle linkage away from the fixedcontact 8 and lift the contact arm 32 rapidly from the fixed contact 8until the cradle 14 abuts against the pin 48 and the contact arm abutsagainst the stop 53. The knee pin 44 of the toggle linkage is firmlyseated within the recess 79v of the resetting lever. This is the trippedposition shown in FIGURE 2A and, as more clearly shown in FIGURE 2B, thecam rolle-r 86 of the resetting lever 74 is moved outwardly of the notch106 in the cam 88.

In resetting the assembly from this tripped position, the operatorrotates the handle 96 in a clockwise direction, thus imparting rotationto the shaft 90 and the cam 88 which is engaged therewith by the pawls110. Since ratchet-type operation of the handle 96 is often preferable,rotation of about is first effected to the position of the elementsshown in FIGURES 3A and 3B where the cam roller 86 is shown in a firststep 107 in the periphery of the cam 88. The upper end of the resettinglever 74 is pivoted towards the fixed contact 8 by the increasing radiusof the camming surface 104 and its bifurcated end portion 78 lacts onthe toggle linkage through the knee pin 44. The contact arm 32 isprevented from pivoting by the stop 53 but the movement of the togglelinks 40, 42 draws the latch portion 16 of the cradle 14 downwardly andtensions the springs 46.

In FIGURES 4A and 4B, further rotation of the handle 9 6 has rotated thecam 88 180 and the cam roller 86 is in a second step 107. The resettinglever 74 has been pivoted still further towards the fixed contact 8, andthe bifurcated end portion 78 has continued to act upon the togglelinkage through the knee pin 44 to draw the latch portion 16 of thecradle 14 further towards the latch member 20 and to tension further thesprings 46.

In FIGURES 5A and 5B, the rotation of the handle 96 has progressed toadvance the cam 88 about 330 to the point where the cam roller 86 isabout to drop into the notch 106. The upper end of the resetting leverhas -been pivoted well towards the fixed contact 8 and the latch portion16 of the cradle 14 has been moved downwardly to cam the latch member 20against the spring 22 and past the shoulder 18. This pivoting of theresetting lever 74 has elongated the springs 46 to store great energytherein.

As the rotation of the cam 88 continues, the cam roller 86 drops intothe notch 106 and allows the upper end of the resetting lever 74 topivot rapidly away from the fixed contact 8 while the cradle latchportion 16 is engaged by the shoulder 18 of the latch member 20. Thetoggle linkage is straightened rapidly in the direction toward the fixedcontact 8 by the stored pressure of the springs 46 to drive the contactarm 32 rapidly against the fixed contact 8. The cam roller 86 is engagedwithin the notch 106 to prevent further rotation of the cam 88 andpivoting `of the lever 74 until such time as the circuit breakerassembly is tripped.

Thus, it can be seen that the present invention provides a novel circuitbreaker assembly that utilizes a relatively compact and simplifiedoperating mechanism for positioning the toggle elements against the biasof powerful operating springs by use of a resetting lever which may bemoved gradually to tension the springs and then released to move thecontacts together rapidly and forcefully. The apparatus may employ arotatable handle of the ratchettype for actuating the resetting leverfor optimum operation in a confined space and may be adapted to a widevariety of circuit breaker assemblies.

It is well understood that various changes in the details, materials,and arrrangement of parts, which have been herein described andillustrated in order to explain the nature of the invention, may -bemade by those skilled in the art within the principle and scope of theinvention as expressed in the claims.

Having thus described the invention, we claim:

1. A circuit breaker assembly comprising:

(a) a support;

(b) a fixed contact on said support;

(c) a movable contact arm pivotably mounted on said support adjacent oneend thereof and providing la contact adjacent the other end thereof forengagement -with said fixed contact, said contact arm being pivotableinto a closed position with its contact in engagement with said fixedcontact and into an open position away therefrom;

(d) a releasable member pivotably mounted on said support adjacent oneend thereof;

(e) latch means on said support normally engaged with and holding theother end of said releasable member in a latched position and operableto release said other end `of said releasable member from said latchedposition for movement of said contact arm away from said fixed contac-t;

(f) a toggle linkage having one link pivotably connected to saidreleasable member intermediate the length thereof, a second linkpivotably connected to said contact arm intermediate the length thereof,and a pvot pin connecting said toggle links, said toggle linkagepositioning said releasable member and said contact arm in open andclosed position;

(g) a spring having one end fixedly mounted on said support vat a pointspaced towards said fixed contact from a line drawn between the point ofconnection of said links to said contact arm and the point of connectionof said links to said releasable member in the closed position of saidcontact arm, said spring having its other end engaged with said togglelinkage and biasing said toggle linkage to closed contact position inthe fixed position of said releasable member and biasing said releasablemember for rotation in opening direction upon release from saidoperating means; and

(h) resetting means for moving said toggle linkage and releasable memberagainst the action of said spring to engage said releasable member withsaid latch means in said latched position and for releasing said togglelinkage upon engagement of said releasable member in said latchedposition to rotate said contact arm rapidly to the closed position underthe action of said spring, said resetting means including a resettingmember engaged with said toggle linkage in the open position thereof formovement rof said releasable member into engagement with said latchmeans and permitting rapid movement of said toggle linkage to the closedposition upon engagement of said releasable member with said latchmeans.

2. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 1 wherein said resetting memberis a lever piv-otably mounted on said support and operable upon pivotingof one end thereof.

3. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 2 wherein said pivot pin ofsaid toggle linkage is elongated and said lever has a recess in theother end thereof receiving said toggle linkage pivot pin for movementof said toggle linkage.

4. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 2 wherein said lever isgenerally V-shaped and is pivoted on said support adjacent the apexthereof at a point spaced to the opposite side of the said line betweenthe pivots of said toggle links to said releasable member and contactarm from said fixed Contact.

5. A circuit breaker assembly comprising:

(a) a support;

(b) a fixed Contact on said support;

(c) a movable contact arm pivoted on said support and providing acontact for said engagement with said iixed contact, said contact armbeing pivotable into a closed position with its contact in engagementwith said fixed contact and into an open position away therefrom;

(d) a releasable member pivoted on said support;

(e) latch means on said support normally engaged with and holding saidreleasable member in latched position and operable to release saidreleasable member from said latched position for movement of saidcontact arm away from said fixed contact;

(f) a toggle linkage between said releasable member and said contact armfor positioning said releasable member and said contact arm in open andclosed position;

(g) a spring having one end fixedly and immovably mounted on saidsupport and the other end engaged with said toggle linkage and biasingsaid toggle linkage to closed contact position in said latched positionof said releasable member and said releasable member away from saidfixed contact upon release from said operating means, and

8. (h) resetting means for moving said toggle linkage and releasablemember against the action of said spring to engage said releasablemember with said operating means in said latched position and forreleasing said toggle linkage upon engagement of said releasable memberin said latched position to rotate said contact arm rapidly to theclosed position under the action of said spring, said resetting meansincluding a lever pivotably mounted on said support and operable uponpivoting of one end thereof, said lever having its other end engagedwith said toggle linkage in the open position thereof for movement ofsaid releasable member into engagement with said operating means andpermitting rapid movement of said toggle linkage l to the closedposition upon engagement of said releasable member with said operatingmeans, a cam mounted on a shaft rotatably mounted on said support andengaged with said one end of said lever, said cam being configured topivot said lever in one direction upon rotation thereof to move saidreleasable member into engagement with said operating means andconfigured thereafter to release said lever from said pivoted positionfor rapid movement in the opposite direction under the action of spring,and a handle on said cam shaft outwardly of said support for engagementby a user to rotate said shaft and thereby said cam for pivoting of saidlever.

6. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 5 wherein said toggle linkagehas an elongated pivot pin at the knee thereof and said lever has arecess in the other end thereof receiving said pivot pin for movement ofsaid toggle linkage.

7. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 5 wherein said resetting meansincludes means for preventing rotation of said cam in one direction.

8. A circuit breaker assembly comprising:

(a) a support;

(b) a fixed contact on said support;

(c) a movable contact arm pivotably mounted on said support adjacent oneend thereof and providing a contact adjacent the other end thereof forengagement with said fixed contact, said contact arm being Vpivotableinto a closed position with its contact in engagement with saidl fixedcontact and into an open position away therefrom;

(d) a releasable member pivotably mounted on said support adjacent oneend thereof;

(e) latch means on said support normally engaged with and holding theother end of said releasable member in latched position and operable torelease said other end of said releasable member from said latchedposition for movement of said contact arm away from said fixed contact;

(f) a toggle linkage having one link pivotably connected to saidreleasable member intermediate the length thereof, a second linkpivotably connected to said contact arm intermediate the length thereof,and a pivot pin connecting said toggle links, said toggle linkagepositioning said releasable member and Lsaid contact arm in open andclosed position;

(g) a spring having one end iixedly mounted on said support at a pointspaced towards said fixed contact from a line drawn between the pivotedconnection of said links to said contact arm and releasable member inthe closed position of said contact arm, said spring having its otherend engaged with said toggle linkage and biasing said toggle linkage toclosed contact position in the fixed position of said releasable memberand said releasable member away from said fixed contact upon releasefrom said latch means; and

(h) resetting means for moving said toggle linkage and releasable memberagainst the action of said spring to engage said releasable member withsaid latch means in said latched position and for releasing said 9toggle linkage upon engagement of said releasable member in said latchedposition to rotate said contact arm rapidly to the closed position underthe action of said spring, said resetting means including a leverpivotably mounted on said support and operable upon pivoting of one endthereof, said lever having its other end engaged with said togglelinkage in the open position thereof for movement of said releasablemember into engagement with said operating means and permitting rapidmovement of said toggle linkage to the closed position upon engagementof said releasable member with said latch means, a cam mounted on ashaft rotatably mounted on said support and engaged with said one end ofsaid lever, said cam being configured to pivot said lever in onedirection upon rotation thereof to move said releasable member intoengagement with said operating means and configured thereafter torelease said lever from said pivoted position for rapid movement in theopposite direction under the action of said spring, and a handle on saidcam shaft outwardly of said support for engagement by a user to rotatesaid shaft and thereby said cam for pivoting of said lever.

9. The Circuit breaker assembly of claim 8 wherein said resetting meansincludes means for preventing rotation of said cam in one direction.

10. The circuit breaker assembly of claim 8 wherein said lever isgenerally V-shaped and is pivoted on said support adjacent the apexthereof at a point spaced to the opposite side of the said line betweenthe pivots of said toggle links to said releasable member and contactarm from said fixed contact.

11. A circuit breaker assembly comprising:

(a) a support member providing an enclosure;

(b) a fixed contact on said support within said enclosure;

(c) a movable contact arm pivotably mounted on said support within saidenclosure adjacent one end thereof and providing a contact adjacent theother end thereof for engagement with said fixed contact, said contactarm being pivotable into a closed position with its contact inengagement with said fixed contact and into an -open position awaytherefrom;

(d) a releasable member pivotably mounted on said support within saidenclosure adjacent one end there- (e) latch means on said supportnormally engaged with and holding the other end of said releasablemember in latched position and .operable to release said other end ofsaid releasable member from said latched position for movement of saidcontact arm away from said xed contact;

(f) a toggle linkage having one link pivotablyconnected to saidreleasable member intermediate the length thereof, a second linkpivotably connected to said contact arm intermdiate the length thereof,and a pivot pin connecting said toggle links, said toggle linkagepositioning said releasable member and said contact arm in open andclosed position;

(g) a spring having one end lixedly mounted on said support within saidenclosure at a point spaced towards said fixed contact from a line drawnbetween the pivoted connection of said links to said contact arm andreleasable member in the closed position of said contact arm, saidspring having its other end y engaged with said toggle linkage andbiasing said toggle linkage to closed contact position in said latchedposition of said releasable member and said releasable member away fromsaid fixed contact upon release from said operating means; and

(h) resetting means for moving said toggle linkage p and releasablemember against the action of said spring to engage said releasablemember with said latch means in said latched position and for releasingsaid toggle linkage upon engagement of said releasable member in saidlatched position to rotate said contact arm rapidly to the closedposition under the action of said spring, said resetting means includinga lever pivotably mounted on said support wit-hin said enclosure andoperable upon pivoting of one end thereof, said lever having a recess inthe other end thereof receiving said pivot pin of said toggle linkagefor movement of said toggle linkage and of said releasable member intoengagement with said latch means and permitting rapid movement of saidtoggle linkage to the closed position upon engagement of said releasablemember with said operating means, a shaft rotatably mounted on saidsupport and extending therethrough said enclosure, a cam on said shaftwithin said enclosure and having its periphery engaged with said one endof said lever, said cam being configured to pivot said lever yin onedirection upon rotation thereof to move said releasable member intoengagement with said operating means and configured thereafter torelease said lever from said pivoted position for rapid movement in theopposite direction under the action of said spring, means engaged withsaid shaft preventing rotation of said cam relative thereto in onedirection of rotation of said shaft, and a handle onV said shaftoutwardly of said enclosure for engagement by a user to rotate saidshaft and thereby said cam for pivoting of said lever.

12. An electric circuit breaker comprising:

(a) a support,

(b) at least one pair of relatively movable contacts supported on saidsupport,

(c) a contact operating member mounted on said support and movablebetween open and closed circuit positions respectively,

(d) means connecting said contact operating member to said relativelymovable contacts to move said contacts between open and closed circuitpositions upon movement of said contact operating member to said openand closed circuit positions respectively,

(e) biasing means having one end thereof connected to said contactoperating member for biasing said contacts toward said closed circuitposition and having the other end thereof xedly mounted on said support,

(f) a manually operable member movably mounted on said support,

(g) means operable by said manually operable member for moving saidbiasing means to a stressed condition, and

(h) means for disconnecting said manually operable member from saidbiasing means whereby at least a portion of the energy stored in saidbiasing means is released to cause closing movement of said cooperablecontacts,

(i) latch means releasably restraining said biasing means in saidstressed condition,

. (j)` current responsive means mounted on said support,

andv

(k) means connecting said current responsive means to said latch meansto cause release of saidlatch means upon the occurrence of predeterminedcurrent conditions through said cooperable contacts.

13. An electric circuit breaker comprising:

(a) asupport,

(b) at least two relatively movable contacts supported on said support,

(c) a contact operating member movably mounted on said support andmovable between open and closed circuit positions,

(d) means connecting said contact operating member to said relativelymovable contacts to move said relatively movable contacts between openand closed circuit positions upon movement of said contact 1 1 operatingmember between said open and closed circuit positions,

(e) resilient biasing means,

(f) means connecting one end of said biasing means to said contactoperating member, and the other end of said biasing means to saidsupport,

(g) a releasable cradle movably mounted on said support,

(h) means connecting said contact operating member to said releasablecradle,

(i) latch means releasably latching said cradle member in a rstposition,

(j) manually operable meansV carried by said support,

(k) means connecting said manually operable means to said contactoperating member,

(l) said cradle member when released from said first position beingmovable to a second position,

(m) said manually operable member being movable between a first positionand a second position to move said contact operating member and saidreleasable cradle member from said released position to said relatchedposition, and means for disconnecting said manually operable member fromsaid contach operating member following movement of said cradle memberand said relatched position to permit said biasing means to move saidcontact operating member from said open circuit position to said closedcircuitposition, and

(n) current responsive means for causing release of said cradle fromsaid latch means upon the occurrence of predetermined currentconditions.

14. An electric circuit breaker comprising:

(a) asupport,

(b) at least one pair of relatively movable contacts supported on saidsupport,

(c) a releasable cradle member pivotally mounted on said support,

(d) a contact operating member pivotally mounted on said cradle member,

(e) means connecting said contact operating member to said relativelymovable contacts to move said movable contacts between open and closedcircuit positions in response to movement of said contact operatingmember between corresponding open and closed circuit positionsrespectively,

(f) elongated biasing means having one end thereof connected to saidcontact operating member and having the other end thereof Xedly mountedon said support,

(g) manually operable means carried by said support,

(-h) means connecting said manually operable means to said contactoperating member t-o move said contact operating member in a directionfrom said closed circuit to said open circuit position against the biasof said biasing means,

(i) means releasing said manually operable member from said contactoperating member to permit said biasing means to move said contactoperating member from said open circuit position to said closed circuitposition.

(j) current-responsive means mounted on said support and connectedelectrically in series with said relatively movable contacts, and

(k) means operated by said current-responsive means for causing releaseof said releasable cradle member upon the occurrence of predeterminedcurrent conditions, said releasable cradle member when released causingmovement of said contact operating member to move said movable contactsto said open circuit position.

15. An electric circuit breaker comprising:

(a) asupport,

(b) a xed contact supported on said support,

(c) a movable contact arm pivotally supported on said support,

(d) a movable contact carried by said movable contact arm4 and movablethereby between a closed circuit position in which it is in contact withsaid ixed contact and au open position in which it is out of contactwith said Xed contact,

(e) a releasable member pivotally supported on said support and movablebetween a latched position and a released position,

(f) latch means mounted on said support, said latch means normallyengaging and retaining said releasable member in said latched position,

(g) a toggle linkage interconnecting said movable contact arm andsaidreleasable member,

(h) a tension spring having one end xedly and immovably mounted on saidsupport and having its other end connected to said toggle linkage, saidtension spring means biasing said toggle linkage in a direction to movesaid contact arm toward said closed position at all times when saidreleasable member is in said latched position and biasing said togglelinkage in a direction to move said contact arm toward said openposition when said releasable member is in said released position, and

(i) resetting and reclosing means carried by said support comprisingmeans for moving said releasable member from said released to saidlatched position.

16. An electric circuit breaker as set forth in claim 15 wherein saidlcircuit breaker also comprises means retaining said movable contact armin said open position while said releasable member is moved from saidreleased to said latched position, and means thereafter releasing saidcontact arm to permit said contact arm to move to said closed position.

17. An electric circuit breaker as set forth in claim 16 wherein saidmeans retaining said movable contact arm in said open position and saidmeans for suddenly releasing said movable contact arm for movementtoward said closed circuit position comprise portions of a single membermovably mounted on said support.

18. An electric circuit breaker as set forth in claim 15 wherein saidresetting and reclosing means comprises means engaging said togglelinkage and acting through said toggle linkage to move said releasablemember tosaid latched position and to simultaneously retain said movablecontact arm in said open circuit position at least until said releasablemember is in said latched position, whereby release of said resettingand reclosing means thereafter causes rapid closing of said movablecontact by said spring.

19. An electric circuit breaker as set forth in claim 18 wherein saidresetting and reclosing means comprises an elongated lever pivotallymounted on said support at one point and engaging said toggle linkage atanother point.

20. An electric circuit breaker comprising:

(a) asupport,

(b) a fixed contact supported on said support,

(c) a movable contact arm pivotally supported on said support,

(d) a movable contact carried by said movable contact arm and movablethereby between a closed circuit position in which it is in contact withsaid fixed contact and an open position in which it is out of conta ctwith said fixed contact,

(e) a releasable member pivotally supported on said support and movablebetween a latched position and a released position,

(f) latched means mounted on said support, said latch means normallyengaging and retaining said releasable member in said latched position,

(g) a toggle linkage interconnecting said movable contact arm and saidreleasable member,

(h) tension spring means having one end xedly and immovably mounted onsaid support and having its other end connected to said toggle linkage,said tension spring means biasing said toggle linkage in a direction tomove said contact arm toward said closed position at all times when saidreleasable it permits movement of said lever from said closed positionto a position spaced therefrom under the action of said toggle linkageupon the release of said releasable member. 21. An electric circuitbreaker as set forth in claim 20 wherein said circuit breaker alsocomprises:

(a) a cam follower member carried by said elongated lever, (b) arotatable cam member mounted on said support member is in said latchedposition and biasing said toggle linkage in a direction to move saidcontact 5 arm toward open position when said releasable member is insaid released position,

(i) resetting and reclosing means carried by said support comprising anelongated lever pivotally mounted being movable to a first position inwhich it moves said lever to a reset position causing resetting movementof said releasable member and said operating member being movable to asecond position in which on said support at one point and engaging saidtog- 10 and engaging said cam follower member, said rotatgle linkage atanother point to move said releasable able Icam acting on said camfollower member to member to said latched position and tosimultaneousmove said elongated lever toward said closed posily retainsaid movable contact arm in said open tion and to suddenly release saidcam follower memcircuit position at least until said releasable memberto permit movement of said elongated lever from ber is in said latchedposition, whereby release of 15 said closed circuit position toward saidopen circuit said resetting and reclosing means thereafter causesposition. rapid `closin-g of said movable contact by said spring,References Cited (Darbcinerating means carried by said support and enUNITED STATES PATENTS 2,388,620 11/1945 Runke 200-116 gaging saidelongated lever, said operating means 20 2,866,872 12/1958 Turner 335 26BERNARD A. GlLHEANY, Primary Examiner.

H. BROOME, Assistant Examiner.

1. A CIRCUIT BREAKER ASSEMBLY COMPRISING: (A) A SUPPORT; (B) A FIXEDCONTACT ON SAID SUPPORT; (C) A MOVABLE CONTACT ARM PIVOTABLY MOUNTED ONSAID SUPPORT ADJACENT ONE END THEREOF AND PROVIDING A CONTACT ADJACENTTHE OTHER END THEREOF FOR ENGAGEMENT WITH SAID FIXED CONTACT, SAIDCONTACT ARM BEING PIVOTABLE INTO A CLOSED POSITION WITH ITS CONTACT INENGAGEMENT WITH SAID FIXED CONTACT AND INTO AN OPEN POSITION AWAYTHEREFROM; (D) A RELEASABLE MEMBER PIVOTABLY MOUNTED ON SAID SUPPORTADJACENT ONE END THEREOF; (E) LATCH MEANS ON SAID SUPPORT NORMALLYENGAGED WITH AND HOLDING THE OTHER END OF SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER IN ALATCHED POSITION AND OPERABLE TO RELEASE SAID OTHER END OF SAIDRELEASABLE MEMBER FROM SAID LATCHED POSITION FOR MOVEMENT OF SAIDCONTACT ARM AWAY FROM SAID FIXED CONTACT; (F) A TOGGLE LINKAGE HAVINGONE LINK PIVOTABLY CONNECTED TO SAID RELEASABLY MEMBER INTERMEDIATE THELENGTH THEREOF, A SECOND LINK PIVOTABLY CONNECTED TO SAID CONTACT ARMINTERMEDIATE THE LENGTH THEREOF, AND A PIVOT PIN CONNECTING SAID TOGGLELINKS, SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE POSITIONING SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER AND SAIDCONTACT ARM IN OPEN AND CLOSED POSITION; (G) A SPRING HAVING ONE ENDFIXEDLY MOUNTED ON SAID SUPPORT AT A POINT SPACED TOWARDS SAID FIXEDCONTACT FROM A LINE DRAWN BETWEEN THE POINT OF CONNECTION OF SAID LINKSTO SAID CONTACT ARM AND THE POINT OF CONNECTION OF SAID LINKS TO SAIDRELEASABLE MEMBER IN THE CLOSED POSITION OF SAID CONTACT ARM, SAIDSPRING HAVING ITS OTHER END ENGAGED WITH SAID TOGGLE LINKAGED ANDBIASING SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE TO CLOSED CONTACT POSITION IN THE FIXEDPOSITION OF SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER AND BIASING SAID RELEASABLE MEMBERFOR ROTATION IN OPENING DIRECTION UPON RELEASE FROM SAID OPERATINGMEANS; AND (H) RESETTING MEANS FOR MOVING SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE ANDRELEASABLE MEMBER AGAINST THE ACTION OF SAID SPRING TO ENGAGE SAIDRELEASABLE MEMBER WITH SAID LATCH MEANS IN SAID LATCHED POSTION AND FORRELEASING SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE UPON ENGAGEMENT OF SAID RELEASABLE MEMBERIN SAID LATCHED POSITION TO ROTATE SAID CONTACT ARM RAPIDLY TO THECLOSED POSITION UNDER THE ACTION OF SAID SPRING, SAID RESETTING MEANSINCLUDING A RESETTING MEMBER ENGAGED WITH SAID TOGGLE LINKAGE IN THEOPEN POSITION THEREOF FOR MOVEMENT OF SAID RELEASABLE MEMBER INTOENGAGEMENT WITH SAID LATCH MEANS AND PERMITTING RAPID MOVEMENT OF SAIDTOGGLE LINKAGE TO THE CLOSED POSITION UPON ENGAGEMENT OF SAID RELEASABLEMEMBER WITH SAID LATCH MEANS.